She's moving on, am I?
by Sara Sidle Grissom
Summary: Grace is dating Craig O'Laughlin and Rigsby is clearly not happy about it. Is he ready to let her go and move on, or not? Rigspelt. Work in progress.
1. Chapter 1

_A/N: Okay, so here's another one of my figment of my imagination. One I got after watching Rigsby's reaction to Agent O'Laughlin taking Grace out to lunch. I think this could be a few chapters long. I hope you'll enjoy this!_

* * *

 **She's moving on, am I?**

"Lunch by chopper," Rigsby huffed as he made his way back to his desk. "What's next, dinner in a hot air balloon? Wedding on the moon?"

"What's that?" Cho asked with a frown, looking up from his casefile, meeting the eyes of his younger coworker.

"Nothing," Rigsby replied as he shook his head a bit.

Cho nodded, "You're upset Van Pelt is moving on."

"No… yes… I mean, she barely knows the guy," Rigsby defended, "Who says he's trustworthy?" He asked.

"He's an FBI agent."

"So what?"

"Just get over it. She broke up with you because of the rules. It's over, move on," Cho suggested with a sigh.

"That's exactly the point. I can't. I love her," Rigsby admitted and looked down. "I wanted to transfer for her, but she… forget it," he added and got up to head to the address Lisbon had given him.

* * *

Once back in the office Rigsby found himself unable to focus on his work. He couldn't stop thinking about Grace having lunch with a man that wasn't him. His Grace with her beautiful smile he wished would be especially for him.

When Grace returned to the bullpen with flushed cheeks and a bright smile, Rigsby felt his blood boil. Craigh hadn't earned that smile, she wasn't for him. "That much fun, huh?" He asked, without looking away from his screen.

Grace looked up, her smile slightly fading. "Yes, what is it to you?"

Rigsby looked up, his jaw tight. "Nothing, glad to see you're moving on," he said, trying to make it sound genuine, but failing.

"You're jealous…" Grace commented, frowning slightly. "You're a hypocrite you know that? You're dating and you expect me to just be fine with it, and now I've met somebody I like at apparently it's all different."

"I said I'm glad you're moving on, so just let it go," Rigsby responded, clearly annoyed.

"Whatever," Grace replied and shook her head a bit. "Jerk," she whispered under her breath.

* * *

Grace felt the tension when she arrived in the bullpen the next morning. She greeted Cho and Rigsby, but only one of them actually replied. She sat down at her desk and opened her email. She couldn't help but smile and blush when she read the cute message Craig had sent her, something that didn't go unnoticed by Rigsby.

Rigsby felt another pang of jealousy pulse through his body as he realized she was definitely moving on. She'd confronted him about him moving on, but was he? He let out a deep sigh and ran his hands over his face. Would he be able to let her go? Would he be able to let her find happiness with Craig? He had no choice, she had made it clear she didn't want him anymore, hadn't she?

He opened his email and browsed the addresses, looking for his contact from the major crimes unit in San Francisco. If seeing Grace with another man was going to hurt this much, he didn't want to be around to see it.

After his small inner battle he found the courage to send a message to see if there was still a position open with the unit. After hitting send, he got up to grab himself a cup of coffee, trying to ignore Grace who was smiling at the screen of her cellphone.

Upon his return at his desk he saw that he'd already gotten a reply. He replied that he would come to San Francisco for the job interview at the time they'd offered him.

He got up and walked over to Lisbon's office, knocking on the door frame. When his boss waved him in he stepped inside and closed the door behind him. "I have a job interview in San Francisco tomorrow, I'm going to need some time off."

"Where's this coming from?" Lisbon asked as she looked up at him.

"Well, that's easy," Jane replied, making Rigsby turn in surprise. "He Rigsby," he smiled and looked up at Lisbon again. "Our young agent here is still deeply in love with Grace van Pelt, and seeing her and O'Laughlin together makes him realize she'll never be his again. He's wrong, but that's the reason he wants to transfer," Jane explained, a smug smile on his face as he saw Rigsby's confusion.

"What do you mean I'm wrong?" Rigsby asked, uncertainty clear in the sound of his voice.

"Well, Grace clearly loves you. She's not going to be happy with O'Laughlin. She'll realize that eventually."

"Oh yeah?" Rigsby snorted a bit. "You must've forgotten she broke up with me."

"Yeah, because of some stupid CBI rules," Jane commented, earning a chastise from Lisbon. "What? They worked perfectly together, their relationship never interfered with her job. There's really no reason they can't be together," he added. "I'd say the rules need some revision."

"Well, I don't have time to wait around to see if things change," Rigsby said, "I'll see you at work the day after tomorrow," he added before leaving his boss' office.

* * *

When Grace arrived the next morning she was startled to see Rigsby's desk empty. "Where's Wayne?" She asked as she looked up at Cho.

Cho shrugged, "I don't know, I'm sure Lisbon does."

"He's at a job interview in San Francisco," Jane replied as he walked in with his cup, dipping a teabag in the hot water. He smirked a bit at the look of surprise on Grace's face.

"But why? He loves this job," Grace replied, her brows furrowed.

"He does," Jane nodded, "but he loves you more, and he can't stand seeing you with another man."

"Why not, he's dating as well," Grace defended. "Besides, it's been months. Craig is a good man."

"I'm not saying he's not, although there is something sketchy about him, but that's not the point," Jane responded. "The point is, Rigsby is trying to forget you by dating people who don't mean anything to him, who are in all ways different from you. It's the same thing you're doing with Craig."

"No it's not, I happen to like Craig very much," Grace retorted with a frustrated huff.

"Then look into my eyes and tell me you don't love Wayne Rigsby anymore," Jane said as he stood in front of her. When Grace didn't reply, he smirked. "That's what I thought."

* * *

 **TBC**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

"Hey, how was San Francisco?" Grace asked Rigsby, trying to sound casual, but failing. She'd been busy trying to decide how to broach the subject the entire morning. Working without him there the day before had been strange and she'd missed him.

Rigsby looked up from his computer and smiled, "Seems like a good unit, nice people," he said and nodded a bit. He wasn't sure what more to tell her, a little surprised she was asking about it.

"What about the position? Did they want to hire you?" Grace asked, already fearing the answer. He was a great agent, she was almost certain they did. She couldn't bear to think about what that would mean for the team… for her. Not seeing him every day terrified her.

"They did actually," Rigsby replied, looking proud. "I can start next month." He had to break eye contact or she would see it wasn't actually what he wanted. Yes it seemed like a great job and the people had truly been nice to him during his interview, but it wasn't this job, it wasn't the CBI unit he'd come to love so much. And the people, they could never measure up to Grace.

"Oh wow… so you're actually leaving," she replied, hearing the sorrow in her own voice. "I thought you loved it here…"

Rigsby swallowed the lump in his throat and nodded a bit. He looked around the room. "Let's go grab a coffee in the breakroom," he suggested, not wanting people to eavesdrop what he was about to confess.

Grace nodded wearily, before getting up and following him.

Rigsby closed the door behind her. "I do, very much," he said. "I'm leaving because of us." He gestured between them.

Grace frowned and kept quiet for a little bit. "What do you mean? I did what I did so you could stay," she explained. "We're friends now, right?"

Rigsby shook his head, hating how he always had to be completely honest to her. "I can't just be friends Grace," he admitted and looked down at his feet for a moment before looking back up at her beautiful face. "I love you, so much," he started. "And seeing you with another man… it kills me. That's why I can't be here. Not anymore…"

"Wayne I…" Grace started, but he interrupted her.

"It's okay Grace, I understand. I really want you to be happy and if that's going to be with a man that's not me… that's okay," he said and gently cupped her cheek to make her look at him. "Really… but it's going to take time. And it'll work best if I don't have to see you every day," he explained as his fingers lingered on her soft cheek for a little while before he lowered his hand. "But God I'll miss you, so much," he confessed in a whisper, a few tears stinging in his eyes.

"I'll miss you too," Grace whispered, her voice trembling as a tear escaped her eye.

Rigsby had to keep himself from kissing her tear away, like he'd done so many times. He could only give her a sad smile. "I'd better go back to work."

"How long?" Grace asked.

"I'm not sure I…" Rigsby started before she spoke again.

"How long before you leave?" She asked in a shaky whisper. She could feel her emotion weigh her down, it felt as if she'd have to say goodbye to him forever even though he'd only be an hour and a half from where she was.

"Little over a month," Rigsby nodded. 'Five more weeks of torture,' he added in his mind.

Grace swallowed the lump in her throat. "Make sure we get enough time to say goodbye," she whispered. She knew it would be incredibly hard to do so, and there was a possibility she wouldn't even be able to let him go.

"I will," Rigsby nodded and used this as a moment to return to his desk, quickly wiping away the stray tear that had escaped his eye.

* * *

"What's gotten into you?" Jane asked as he saw Grace return to the bullpen, looking as if she'd seen a ghost.

Grace wanted to tell him to back off, not in the mood to discuss this, but no words could leave her lips because a small cry forced its way up through her throat. "Sorry," she choked and immediately turned to leave again, not wanting to cry in the presence of all of her coworkers.

Jane followed her to the elevator and up to the roof, where she stood watching over the city. "It's about Wayne leaving, isn't it?" He asked, even though he already knew the answer.

Grace barely nodded, wiping at her eyes. "Did you know he was transferring?" She asked as she turned around to face Jane.

Jane nodded, "I did," he said and looked around a bit. "And judging by the tears on your eyes you do not want him to go," he continued. "He's tried really hard Grace, to continue working with you and to just be friends, but I can see it's taking a toll on him."

"I know," Grace whispered sadly. "I just… I didn't want the responsibility of knowing he transferred because of me… and now I still get it. Now he still loses the job he loves because of me."

"It's his choice Grace, just like it was the first time. He loves you and I know for a fact he would do absolutely anything for you," Jane said and gave her a small smile. "I know it's scary."

Grace swallowed the lump of emotion in her throat. "Maybe it's better this way," she mused. "There's no way we can be together anyhow, and I'm moving on with Craig… I should be happy."

"But you're not."

"I think I am," Grace defended as she looked up. "Craig is a good man, he treats me right and there are no stupid rules forbidding us from dating."

Jane gave a small chuckle, "But Wayne is the man you want."

Grace looked down at her feet and gave a small nod. "I love him, so much, but it's over and I can't keep stringing him along, that's not fair. He deserves to be happy and move on."

"I know that's not all of the story," Jane said and watched the small look of surprise on her face. "You're afraid of letting people too close, afraid of what they will find out about you. Now Craig, you can keep him at a safe distance, he's not a threat. Rigsby however, he'd almost broken through your last wall, hadn't he?"

Grace swallowed nervously, feeling incredibly comfortable with Jane dissecting her mind like this. She'd seen him do it before on other people, but being on the receiving end was something that was nerve-racking.

Jane continued, "you're afraid to let him in, afraid he'll turn away once he knows all of you," he said, her silence confirming his words. "Have you ever had this conversation with him? Told him you're scared?"

"In a way, but not like this," Grace admitted and wiped away some new tears that started to escape. "It's too late now, he'll be happy in San Francisco and I'll be happy here. I want him to be happy."

Jane nodded a bit, "He'd want the same thing for you Grace, but still I think neither of you can be happy without each other, but that's just my interpretation… I want you to really think about this conversation, you still have five weeks to make up your mind."

Grace nodded, "Thanks Jane," she replied as she let out a deep sigh, trying to calm her emotions. These five weeks were going to be incredibly hard.

 **TBC**


	3. Chapter 3

_A/N: I had to play with the time line a little bit to make this work, even though it's never clear how much time passes on the show. Hope you'll enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it. Hope to hear from you!_

* * *

 **Chapter 3**

Just when he thought it couldn't get any worse, it did. Grace had had a rough couple of days after a key witness had been murdered during her protection. He'd wanted to be there for her, but of course Craig had been there to take his place. And now… now Grace had a large rock on her finger because she had accepted Craig's marriage proposal. He had had no choice but to tell her he was happy for her, a fake smile plastered on his face while his heart crumbled into a million tiny pieces. All the hope he might still have had now lost. She was marrying another man, she had definitely moved on.

As he sat behind his computer he found himself unable to concentrate on his work, something that didn't go unnoticed by Jane. The older man sat on his leather couch and watched Rigsby for a while, seeing how the younger man was fighting an inner battle. Team one was wanting Grace to be happy and team two was wanting Grace for himself. He could see team two was winning, which made it very hard for Rigsby to focus. Jane got up and headed over, sitting on the corner of Rigsby's desk. "How are you holding up?" He asked.

Rigsby looked up and let out a deep sigh, "I'm fine," he said, but his jaw was clenched as well as his fists, revealing he was far from okay. He let out another sigh as Jane continued to stare at him. "Okay so I'm not fine, this sucks," he said, making sure to keep his voice low so nobody would overhear. "Craig is a good man, and I'm sure he'll make Grace happy, it's just that…"

"You want to be the man Grace marries," Jane added and watched Rigsby nod. "What did you say to her when she told you about her engagement?"

Rigsby frowned, "I did what I was supposed to do of course," he replied, "told her I was happy for her."

"Are you?" Jane enquired.

"No…" Rigsby admitted.

"Then tell her!" Jane practically exclaimed, making Rigsby shush him, looking around to see if anybody had overheard.

"I can't, it's not fair to her and you know it. I just have to wait it out a couple more weeks and then things will be fine," Rigsby replied as he focused back on his computer screen, trying to remember what Lisbon had ordered him to do.

"You're such a coward," Jane replied and shook his head a little bit. He got up from the desk and retreated back to his couch. "Open up to her, tell her everything…" he added as his final advice.

* * *

The moment he saw Grace's gun jam he felt his chest tighten. He tried to make eye contact with Craig, but the man wasn't looking. "Damnit," he cursed under his breath before glancing up at Grace again to see if she'd gotten her gun to work yet. "O'Laughlin," he called out, "Grace is in trouble, cover me!"

When Craig didn't seem to react he got up, calling out to Grace to get down low as he made a jump, killing the suspect in the chest before landing on a pile of garbage bags. He panted as he looked at Grace, making sure she was okay.

Back at the office the scene kept playing through his mind, the fear he had felt upon Grace's gun malfunctioning and the anger because her fiancé didn't do anything to protect her. Now he was faced with a large dilemma, was he going to tell Grace or was he going to keep this to himself?

By the end of the day he had made up his mind. He grabbed a chair and put it next to Grace's desk. She smiled at him. "I need to talk to you about something," he said and waited for her to face him. When he did he saw her beautiful smile. He swallowed nervously and saw genuine happiness on her face. He couldn't be the one to undo all of that so instead he decided to tell her about a friend who might be able to get het the wedding she wanted at the venue he wanted.

When Grace got up to hug him he kept her close for just a while longer, taking in the smell of her perfume. He closed his eyes briefly before pulling back, throwing her a smile. "It's going to be great," he told her before putting the chair back and heading to his desk to shut down his computer for the day.

* * *

From that moment everything had moved at lightning speed. His final weeks at the CBI flew by and after a farewell party he was now on his way to San Francisco. He was nervous and homesick already. After a drive of an hour and a half he parked his car and took a deep breath, mentally preparing himself. He grabbed his suit coat, put it on and headed inside the building, receiving a temporary visitor badge.

"Wayne Rigsby," a man greeted as he walked towards him with an extended hand. "Joe Athena, welcome to the team," he said.

Rigsby shook his hand and gave a polite smile, "Thanks, it's good to finally be here. So uhm… anything I can start on, jump right into it?"

Joe nodded as he nodded his head in the direction of a large room, "They've just started briefing on a new case, let's sit in," he said as he held the glass door for Rigsby.

* * *

Jane found Grace on the second day of Rigsby's absence, he caught her looking at the empty desk. "Hey Grace," he greeted, making the woman spun towards him with a small blush at having been caught. "How're you holding up?"

"I'm good, why?" Grace easily defended, truth was she missed her friend already. Just before he'd left he'd told her he wouldn't be able to be at her wedding because he was still in love with her and wouldn't be able to watch her marry another man. She had wanted to tell him she didn't want him to try and win her back, but in all truth that was what she had wanted. She still loved him too, very much so, and the realization that she wouldn't get to see him every day killed her inside.

"You're not," Jane retorted as he sipped his tea. "Which is understandable," he added. "Grace, I know you still love Rigsby, just as much as he loves you…"

 **TBC**

* * *

 _A/N2: Things feel a little bit rushed, but hopefully it'll be less rushed from the next chapter forward._


End file.
